My Baby Wakes Up Screaming? 15 Reasons and Gentle Solutions
Sarah Mann·17 min read
Most parents feel unsure and a little helpless when their baby wakes up screaming inconsolably. Why is this happening? What should you do? And is it normal?
For some babies it starts out of nowhere, after weeks of sleeping beautifully. Others wake up crying night after night.
Some babies settle again quickly, others just won't.
The causes can be very different from one baby to the next. But here's the one thing you should know: you are not the only ones dealing with this!
In this article you'll find 15 possible reasons (which can look very different depending on your baby's age) why your little one wakes up screaming, along with what you can do about each one.
Your Baby Wakes Up Screaming? 15 Possible Reasons and What to Do About Each One
Babies are very sensitive when it comes to sleep, far more than we adults are. It also helps to remember that crying is the only way (especially younger) babies have to communicate and get our attention.
Before we get to the list of 15 possible reasons your baby is crying (and waking up), please keep a few things in mind:
Every baby is different and shows what's bothering them in their own way. I'll do my best to lay out reasons and solutions here, but for any given problem there's rarely one single method that fixes it.
Even with this detailed list, it isn't always easy to pinpoint the real cause. Often it comes down to trial and error. If you'd like some support, you're always welcome to look into my sleep consulting options.
In most cases you can solve sleep issues at home (even if it isn't always easy), and a trip to the doctor isn't always necessary. But if you're dealing with regular screaming spells or you feel very unsure, don't hesitate to see your pediatrician and ask for advice. This article is not a substitute for medical advice.
Physical Symptoms
Physical causes should always be the first thing you check when you're looking for reasons behind your baby's crying. Several different things can be at play here.
1. Hunger (1 to 6 Months)
One of the simplest reasons for crying might just be hunger (babies have a very strong sense of hunger!). And especially for babies younger than 4 months, hunger is the number one reason for frantic crying in the middle of the night.
Keep in mind that little babies want to feed every 2 to 3 hours. And up to 6 months, you can expect your baby to still get hungry at night.
One More Tip
Try to make sure your little one doesn't regularly fall asleep at the breast (or with the bottle). They should still be awake when they drift off (ideally lying down), so they don't develop an unwanted sleep association. (More on that later.)
2. A Suitable Sleep Environment (Any Age)
Next, check whether the sleep conditions are right for your baby. Is the room too hot or too cold (and is your little one dressed accordingly)? Is the diaper wet or full?
Feel the back of your baby's neck to see if they're too warm. And if you need to change a diaper at night, try to do it as quietly as possible and in dim light, so it's easier for your baby to drift back to sleep.
Loud noises, mosquitoes, a change in brightness, or other outside factors can of course interrupt the sleep of a baby who is actually still tired and drowsy. Especially when this happens in the middle of a sleep cycle, a sharp, startled cry is not unusual.
3. Gas (1 to 4 Months)
If your baby is crying hard, seems to curl up their belly, and can't be soothed, gas might be the culprit.
A bloated tummy can cause real discomfort and pain. Clenched fists and squirming are also signs of gas.
If this happens often, talk to your pediatrician about it.
4. Teething (from 4 Months)
Your baby wakes up screaming, maybe because they're teething.
Especially when your baby is between 4 and 6 months old, you can expect that first little tooth. (Though some babies are still waiting for their first tooth in month 12.) Often you won't actually see the tooth itself until a week or two later.
As so often, babies react to teething very differently. While some show almost no reaction, others suffer real pain, which they tend to express especially at night.
Along with a mild fever and pain, there are other possible signs that point to teething:
Very typical is constant chewing on their hands and other objects.
General restlessness. Baby fusses and cries much more.
Frequent drooling.
Swollen gums.
Sometimes babies eat less during this time.
Diarrhea is possible.
A stronger desire for physical closeness and cuddling.
So if your baby shows these signs during the day and then suddenly cries out sharply in their sleep at night, teething is probably to blame.
What to Do When Baby Is Teething
A teething ring (chilled, if you like), a cold wet washcloth, teething gel, or, if it's very painful, sometimes a mild pain reliever can help.
5. Illness (Any Age)
Besides teething, illness can of course cause a lot of discomfort too.
Coughs, colds, ear infections... you can often recognize them by your child's behavior, since they're hard or impossible to soothe and keep rubbing or tugging at their ears, eyes, or nose. On top of that, they'll usually have a raised temperature or a fever. Diarrhea can occur as well.
In this case, talk to your pediatrician directly about what to do.
Phases
As your child grows, they go through different phases that can have very different effects. Especially with older babies, from around 9 months on, night waking becomes more of a developmental thing than a physical one.
6. Separation Anxiety (Especially 9 to 12 Months)
Most babies go through a significant developmental leap between 9 and 12 months, when their awareness increases dramatically. They develop the ability to tell people apart even more easily. And suddenly they notice when their caregiver leaves the room or is out of sight. They don't like this one bit, and it can bring up real fear! This is what we call separation anxiety.
During this phase, babies are especially clingy and want to be apart from you as little as possible.
This behavior is actually a good thing, because it's a sign of healthy, natural development. But alongside a huge wave of physical development (learning to crawl, to pull up to standing, maybe even the first words), all of these new impressions need to be processed. And very often, just like for us adults, that happens at night.
It can also feel confusing for your baby to wake at night and not know whether you're there. Until now they may have simply slept through, but with their newly developed separation anxiety, they now start to cry out sharply.
Separation anxiety (or emotional needs in general) can often be recognized by how quickly babies settle again as soon as they see (or hear) you.
My Baby Has Separation Anxiety, What Should I Do?
Here are a few tips for getting through this phase well:
Play games with your baby that gently recreate the everyday moments when Mom or Dad is out of sight. Hold a cloth between you and your baby for a few seconds and say, "Where's Mommy? There she is!" Little by little, your baby learns that just because you can't see something or someone, it doesn't mean they're gone.
At night, a small night light can help so the room isn't completely dark.
Meaningful bedtime rituals are very helpful. They help your child wind down and can be used in a short version at night to soothe your little one. They also do a lot to strengthen the bond between parent and child.
Finally, remember that this is a phase. Your baby is learning something really important right now. And the good thing about phases is that they eventually pass.
7. Developmental Leaps and Growth Spurts (Any Age)
Developmental leaps and growth spurts in general can be the reason your baby cries out at night.
Sitting up, crawling, walking... these are exciting new skills that can also disrupt your baby's sleep. Not only does your little one have to process this development mentally, they might also get genuinely active in their crib at night, for example standing up at the crib rail and not yet knowing how to sit back down. (The result is loud crying!)
So here the main thing is to be there for your child and support them through this development.
(By the way, family changes can also be behind all the processing that leads to crying. A new sibling, a separation, or a move are big changes that even small babies can be very sensitive to.)
8. Sleep Regressions (from 3 Months)
Developmental leaps don't come alone; they usually arrive with a so-called sleep regression (or "sleep setback"). We call it a setback because good sleep habits that were already in place are (temporarily!) lost. Suddenly your baby wakes many times a night or only falls (back) asleep with great difficulty.
You can especially expect a sleep regression at these ages:
What all of these phases have in common is that babies this age are also making huge developmental leaps.
Sleep Habits
Your baby wakes up screaming, maybe because the underlying sleep structure isn't quite right. The wrong sleep rhythm, overtiredness, or sleep associations can all be behind the waking and crying at night.
The good news is that these sleep structures can often be improved a lot, once you know how.
It's always worth reviewing these for your baby. You might notice they're sleeping too much or too often during the day. Or that wake windows are too long. Imbalances like these often lead to frequent waking and frantic crying. At night, too.
Your baby suddenly cries out sharply in their sleep, and of course you immediately wonder: Is this normal? How bad is it, and does it happen to other parents too?
Here I can reassure you. Because first of all, we all briefly wake up from time to time, specifically between sleep cycles. Often it happens without us noticing. We check that everything around us is okay, roll over, and simply keep sleeping. And in general it's the same for babies (or it should develop that way).
(By the way, a sleep cycle lasts about 90 minutes for adults and about 60 minutes for babies. So our sleep is made up of one sleep cycle strung after another.)
For various reasons, it can happen that we don't just keep sleeping during these in-between moments. Namely, when something isn't the way we expected. We hear a noise, it's brighter than usual, and so on.
Babies, too, can be unhappy with something, and they express it with a sharp cry. (Sometimes they can get very worked up, so that their little heart is pounding.)
Sometimes, though, these crying spells last only 1 to 2 minutes and then they keep sleeping on their own (it can be worth waiting a moment before you step in).
Some children find it harder to keep sleeping than others. But especially once they're a bit older (from 18 months), a short, calm sentence is often enough ("It's okay! Sleep tight...") to help them drift back off.
When babies can't manage to keep sleeping on their own, it's very often down to one of the following two reasons: overtiredness and sleep associations.
11. Overtiredness at Bedtime (Any Age)
Most parents are surprised that overtiredness can be a reason for frequent night waking (or for waking up too early in the morning). But it really is true. Overtired babies tend to have more trouble settling at bedtime and sleeping through the night.
So try to keep to suitable, optimal wake windows for your baby (which are of course individual) and avoid putting your baby down overtired.
You can read more in my article on what to do when your baby is overtired but won't sleep.
12. Sleep Associations (from 4 Months)
Sleep associations are a very common reason your baby wakes up crying, especially between two sleep cycles.
The idea is that your baby wants the same conditions they had when falling asleep when they need to keep sleeping through the night between cycles. When they notice the pacifier, the breast, or the bottle is no longer there, they start to cry, because they've gotten used to that "aid" for falling asleep and now want it back.
Sleep associations can also be being carried, rocked, or stroked to sleep.
So it's really important to think about which sleep association you want for your baby, keeping in mind that your baby will very likely keep asking for it at night for several months.
Most parents in this situation, myself included, try to gently and in an attachment-focused way teach their little one to fall asleep on their own in the crib! Because once they've learned this, sleeping through the night works much better too.
Other
13. "Purple Crying" (0 to 4 Months)
For newborns, a total of one to two hours of crying a day is not unusual. Sometimes it's even three hours or more.
These babies are often described as having "colic," though the term is questionable and the causes and background are debated. (If it were true colic, medication would help. But often it doesn't!)
In English, the term "purple crying" has become established for these crying spells that seem to have no obvious reason. PURPLE is an acronym describing hours of inconsolable crying when nothing is actually wrong.
Crying spells can be really intense! As parents, we feel incredibly helpless, tired, disheartened, and powerless. Because so often none of the tips and tricks make any difference.
But there's one important thing we parents shouldn't forget:
Crying is your baby's only way to communicate. And your baby isn't crying because you're "bad" parents! Or because of your uncertainty. For a baby, the shift from the womb to the real world is simply enormous, and they have to process all of that first.
What to Do?
The best tip I ever received was this: try to accompany your baby through their sadness, their frustration, their crying. Let go of the idea that you have to desperately comfort, distract, and quiet them. Just as we comfort an older child who is sad or has hurt themselves, we can do the same for our babies, who are going through a phase that is challenging for them right now.
(No wonder, then, that baby massage, the colic hold, and medication are useless in a situation like this!)
Hang in there. This phase will pass too!
You'll find more on this in my article on newborns who won't sleep, and in my eBook on newborn sleep secrets.
14. Temperament (Any Age)
To finish, two more very simple possible reasons why your baby wakes up screaming.
The first is temperament!
A child's temperament can make a difference in how they cry. While some babies quietly fuss to themselves, others are right there with a strong voice, letting you know they need something now.
15. Done Sleeping! (Any Age)
And finally, the last possible reason on my list: maybe your baby is simply done sleeping!
So why all the crying?
Maybe because the sleep, the night, the falling asleep, or the time before sleep wasn't really relaxed. We adults don't always wake up fresh and cheerful, ready to take on the day, either. Sometimes it's hard for us too, and we're still groggy from a restless night.
If your baby starts their wake time like this, they'll probably need a lot of closeness, cuddles (depending on their personality), or a distraction (a snack, a toy) at first.
I can remember many naps that ended with loud crying. In many cases it meant my little one hadn't finished sleeping and needed a bit more rest. When I could, I'd stay with them in the dark room a little longer to cuddle or nurse.
Summary
There are many possible reasons your baby wakes up crying loudly. Most of them are completely typical and nothing serious.
With younger babies it's usually down to physical things like hunger or teething, while with older babies, separation anxiety, sleep associations, and sleep regressions play a bigger role.
Once you've figured out the reason for the crying (which isn't always immediately obvious), you can respond accordingly and help your baby sleep better.
With love,
Sarah
With love, Sarah
About the author
Sarah Mann
Mom of seven. Certified Sensitive Sleep Consultant of the ISSC Australia. Founder of Land of Little Dreamers. Writing about attachment-friendly baby sleep for ten years, because it took her years to find her own way.
The 9-Month Difficult Phase: 7 Real Tips That Help Right Now
You don't recognize your baby anymore? Screaming fits, meltdowns, and sleepless nights? Your little one only wants you, and you feel drained and helpless. Here's why the 9-month phase is so hard, and what actually helps.
Baby Sleep at 6 Months: Sleep Needs, Wake Windows & Sleep Problems
Six months is a real milestone in your baby's first year. You have made it through the first half of that first year and left many newborn challenges behind (yay). Now a special new baby phase begins, full of exciting development.
